


Shipwrecked

by quietpastelcolours



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: 17th century setting, F/M, Pirate AU, and pirate jamie and mako bc why not, features some shipwrecked pirates and some dudes getting drowned by a mermaid, mermaid au, some mermaid satya for mermay
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-18
Updated: 2017-05-18
Packaged: 2018-11-02 03:40:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10936245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/quietpastelcolours/pseuds/quietpastelcolours
Summary: Pirate captain Jamison Fawkes and his first mate Mako Rutledge have run into their fair share of trouble on the high seas, but neither of them ever expected to find a mermaid washed ashore with them.





	Shipwrecked

The storm was as bad as they’d feared.

Both men were drenched in rain and salt spray as they fought with the rigging, the sails and the rudder in a bid to prevent capsizing. Mako’s experience with smaller vessels meant he was in charge, shouting barely audible orders over the raging storm. Rain poured into his eyes as Jamison hung onto a rope, his whole bodyweight needed to prevent the rigging from ripping out of his grasp, and he cursed this blasted boat; where was his ship when he needed her? Mako was up the other end of the boat doing something that Jamison couldn’t even see; the large man’s form was almost entirely concealed by sea spray and foam as their small boat careened up and down the staggering waves. Jamison’s stomach lurched as the boat abruptly changed course in mid-air; they’d been perched atop a wave which now came crashing down, and they surged down a drop taller than most palaces. They reached the bottom with a sickening creak of battered timber, but the boat held, and they were immediately swept to the side by yet other pull of the stormy sea. A crack of wood echoed in his ears and Jamison threw himself backwards, just barely avoiding being skewered by the top of the mainmast as it shattered in the storm and immediately plunged overboard to be pulled away by the current. The only problem was, the mast was still attached by rope and rigging, and the boat was beginning to tip from the pull.

Jamison immediately fell to his knees, the handle of his knife slippery in his hands as he fought feverishly with the ropes, cutting and slicing madly to free the boat before it tipped and he and Mako were lost to the sea. The rain was still lashing down, icy rivulets pouring down his neck and into his eyes, and he swore he could see strange flashes of blue scales beneath the raging water, almost like a large fish. At one point the deck lurched beneath him and his knife slipped, stabbing deeply into his right hand. Jamison swore and struggled to rip the blade from in between the struts of his metal hand, and barely noticed the shadow falling over him as Mako fell heavily to his knees and ripped the knife out with ease. They worked together, quickly slicing through wet rope, fibres biting into their flesh as thunder rumbled and lightening cracked, the waves whipping their boat around and around in a dizzying array of circles as the vessel tipped dangerously on its side. Jamison took the luxury of taking a second to wipe the salt water from his eyes, and then as he looked up, a crack of lightening illuminated a great wave, many stories high, about to come crashing down upon them. Mako reacted faster than light; grabbing rope, he lashed himself and Jamison to the remnants of the masts, then nodded briefly. There was no use wrestling with the broken mast now; they would almost certainly die when this wave fell.

Jamison nodded back, then turned to watch the wave as it came down on their heads.

 

* * *

 

Jamison wasn’t exactly what you’d call a god-fearing man, though he’d sometimes thought it best to cover his bases. He’d owned a bible at one point and had set foot in a church before, and both of these seemed good enough reason to assume that God might take mercy on his soul and not condemn him to hell. At the very least, he didn’t seem to be in a watery grave, doomed to spend eternity in Davy Jones’ locker.

If anything, the afterlife seemed to be… _sandier_ than expected. Jamison lifted his head and spat out a mouthful of sand, blinking blearily in the muted light. Every inch of him hurt, and for a moment he couldn’t seem to work out why. He felt uncomfortably damp, and that bothered him for a moment until he realised he was being rained on. Lifting his head a little higher, Jamison realised there was a rounded piece of timber in front of him with rope wrapped around it that trailed loosely over his arm. One end of the timber post was jagged, bristling with vicious looking splinters, like it had been shattered from something… Jamison tipped his head to the side and was met with what appeared to be the washed-up remnants of a boat.

With a pained groan, he recalled the storm, the desperation of himself and Mako – _Mako_. Jamison’s eyes popped wide and he pushed himself painfully to his knees. He had rope tied around his waist, and that confused him until he remembered Mako lashing them both to the boat before the wave hit. He struggled out of his bonds and staggered upright, looking over the wreckage for something resembling a body – _there_. Mako lay entangled in the tattered remnants of their sail, and there was a large plank of timber resting across his back, and not only that – he lay so close to the sea that the storm turned ocean was washing half way up his legs, as if trying to draw him back into the sea. Jamison swore and began making his way stiffly towards his friend as the rain began to pour harder, and found it slow going – his peg kept sinking into the wet sand and slowing him down. Reaching Mako’s side, Jamison dropped to his knees and shook the big man’s arm.

“Mako. _Mako_. Oi. Mako?”

From beneath the drenched leather mask he wore, Mako made a noise, a faint groan, and relieved, Jamison staggered over to the timber lying across him and lifted it off, then set about detangling him from the sail. Mako came around during these ministrations, and when they’d both determined he had no broken bones, they dragged themselves stiffly up the beach away from the wreckage of their boat, to sit in the shelter provided by a small grove of coconut palms.

“Well.” Jamison cleared his parched throat and offered Mako a grin as thunder cracked in the distance. “That was somethin’, ay?”

Mako snorted and shook his head. “We nearly fuckin’ died, an’ all y’can say is that it was _‘somethin’?”_ There was a pause. “It was somethin’, wasn’t it?”

Jamison giggled briefly, and then realised Mako was staring at something over his head.

Twisting around to see, Jamison ignored the aching muscles that protested at his movement as curiosity made him scan the surrounding area… he could see nothing but the wreckage of their little fishing boat, illuminated briefly by a flash of lightening, which had washed up against a rocky sort of beach. There was a large clump of rock nearby with tide pools keeping trapped water from the ocean, and splayed across the sand near one of the rocks was another section of their mast, and beneath it… was a woman.

Jamison blinked and looked again through the pouring rain, but no, he wasn’t hallucinating, it was definitely a woman.

“Uh.” He said blankly, and clambered stiffly to his feet. Mako followed, albeit at a slower pace as Jamison crept over the sand towards the woman. At first glance she could have been sleeping – at second, she was badly injured. Jamison picked up his pace even as he tossed his questions over his shoulder at Mako.

“Was there a woman on that boat? A stowaway?” He asked, but Mako couldn’t answer him, and so Jamison hurried over to sink to his knees beside the woman. Mako hauled the mast off her and tossed it away, and as the sail and rigging disappeared from overtop of her, they both caught their breath, for this was no woman.

She was a woman only to the waist, whereupon her smooth skin changed to glittering blue scales which covered a long, supple tail curled tightly beneath her. The tail glistened in the rain and Jamison stared, stupefied.

“Mermaid.” He whispered hoarsely. “Fuck, mate. _Mermaid_.”

Mako made a similar noise of disbelief, and they both leaned down to ascertain if she was alive or not. Jamison gingerly pressed his good hand to her neck, seeking a pulse, a part of him wondering if fish-women even _had_ pulses. She did have one, as it turned out; the throb of blood beneath his fingers was slow and weak, but it was present.

“She’s alive.” He muttered grimly, and Mako nodded before he turned to the sail he’d previously dragged off her to rip parts of it away. Jamison similarly sacrificed his tattered shirt, for she was going to need bandages. The mermaid appeared to have been badly entangled within the rigging, and that had caused her to be dragged ashore – rope was still wrapped around her body, and she was bleeding quite badly in places where it had cut into her skin, staining the sand crimson.

Mako set to work gently cutting the ropes from her body, and as her bonds were removed and her wounds revealed, many of them reopening from the pressure, Jamison bandaged her up as best he could. His metal hand, despite the pulleys and springs he’d employed to move crudely formed fingers, was not adapt at forming small knots, and he ended up just wrapping her up tightly and leaving the ends loose for Mako to tie off. Her arm was the worst, and they debated what to do for it – her shoulder was dislocated quite badly, creating a painful looking distortion beneath her skin, and to make matters worse, she didn’t have a flesh arm where her other one ought to be – it appeared to be made from corals and shells, and neither of them wanted to touch it. In the end, Mako, who knew a little about medical practices, gingerly took her in hand and slipped her arm back into joint; her body convulsed slightly and she made a softly muffled groan but her eyes remained closed.

They deliberated for a long while about what to do with her; if she stayed out of water, would she die, like a fish would? Similarly, if left in direct sun, would it hurt her? Could they just leave her in the rain, or was that not enough? In the end, they put her in the largest tide pool, and Mako constructed a crude shelter over the top of it using a few poles spread with palm fronds. They both sat beneath this and watched the mermaid as she slumbered, her long dark hair drifting gently in the water.

Jamison rather felt like she was everything a mermaid was said to be; in every sea shanty and ocean myth he’d ever heard, they were beautiful, beguiling creatures who could lure a man away from home, family and fortune with the sweetness of their song. This mermaid was beautiful as anything he’d ever seen; her hair and skin were dark, and her features, Jamison thought, rather resembled the eastern merchants he sometimes saw at the docks. She was dressed, if you could call it that, in corals and shells knitted together with seaweed and strung with strands of glistening pearls. Her tail didn’t match with the myths, however; she didn’t have the tail of a fish. It was more like that of an eel, or maybe some sort of sea serpent, fringed with a long, delicate fin that ran down the length of it to end in a feathery protrusion at the tip. The glistening scales gleamed a bright vivid blue dappled with stripes of a faint lighter shade, and that put him in mind of poisonous things; this mermaid, he was sure, was as lethal as she was beautiful. Her tail was badly damaged, despite the gleaming scales, and Jamison wasn’t entirely sure if she’d be able to swim properly – especially with her arm – and he didn’t know if the feathery fins were functional or decorative, for much of them were ripped and shredded, probably caused by her struggling to free herself from the rope as the storm swept her along, or maybe from when she’d washed up on the rocks.

As for her currently unconscious state, well. The mermaid had a large bruise over her right temple, extending down from her hair. There had been blood encrusted on her skin and in her hair, and Jamison suspected that, because of her entanglement in the rope, she’d been unable to prevent herself from being swept into the boat hard enough to dislocate her arm and render her unconscious. When the storm had finally ceased to rage, in between taking turns to watch the mermaid, Jamison and Mako looked about to see if they could discern where they were, or find anything like food or drink. 

They had washed up on an island, not terribly big but large enough to house a village at least. Unfortunately, the island was bare of human habitation, but it did have a nice enough population of monkeys. One monkey served them well as food, which they ravenously descended upon, having built a small fire near the mermaid’s pool and collected a few coconuts. Once they’d taken care of their bellies, they set about examining their boat. The storm had at first glance utterly decimated it, but a careful once over revealed that it wasn’t so bad. The masts had snapped and their rigging was ruined, but the hull was intact; they could replace the masts and figure out something for the rigging, and in all probability sail safely away – in the absence of any storms.

Jamison had lost his knife _and_ his only bag of gunpowder (the majority of his stock being on his _real_ ship, which was now lost, never to be seen again) but Mako still had his little knapsack of supplies, including flint and a few blades.

They hadn’t survived completely unscathed, however; Mako had large bruises staining his back and Jamison had a large gash running along his chest, which had bled freely until the salt water helped close the wound, and they both had rope burns covering their hands and encircling their waists, similar to the injuries the mermaid had. They’d returned to sit beside her, and they were locked in discussion of whether or not mermaids could speak when he looked across at her, and she looked back.

Her eyes were open, and he really hadn’t expected them to be quite the shade of gold that they were. Mako noticed him staring and also turned to look, and the mermaid stared at them both, indignation written on her features but fear lurking in her eyes.

Jamison slowly reached out and nudged Mako. “She’s awake.” He hissed, and Mako sighed.

“I figured.”

The mermaid’s gaze flickered back and forth between them for a moment.

“What do we do?” Jamison continued in a whisper. “Do we talk t’her? Do mermaids even talk?”

The mermaid frowned slightly.

“Why don’t y’ask her then?” Mako rumbled, and Jamison was just thinking that this was very sensible advice when the mermaid made an irritable noise.

“I am right here, you know.” She said, her tone slightly irritated. Her accent added a curious lilt to her words, and Jamison found he rather liked it.

“That y’are.” He said, figuring it was time for an introduction. “The name’s Captain Jamison Fawkes.” Jamison lifted a hand to his head to tip his hat, forgetting that his tricorn had been lost in the storm, and ended up groping around in empty space for a moment. “This here’s me first mate, Mako.”

Mako greeted the mermaid with few words, as was his custom, and then Jamison tilted his head, wondering what was supposed to happen next. No one spoke, so he decided he was just going to have to take the initiative.

“So y’got a name?” He inquired, and the mermaid lifted her chin.

“Yes.” She replied, but didn’t elaborate right away. Jamison was just thinking he was going to have to prompt her when she continued. “My name is Satya.”

“Satya.” Jamison tried out the word on his tongue, but promptly failed to make it sound like she had. “Roight.” He drummed his fingers on his knees for a moment. “So, uh, how’d y’end up here?”

Her eyes flashed with scorn. “You couldn’t tell?”

Mako stifled a laugh and Jamison scowled. “I _meant_ -” He emphasised. “-how’d y’end up in the _storm_. Tryin’ t’get anywhere in particular?”

“That-” Satya said very precisely. “-is none of your business.”

Mako laughed again, clapped Jamison on the shoulder and left to do something with the wreckage of the boat, leaving Jamison to glare at the mermaid.

“Roight.” He said. “I don’t have t’be nice.” He tapped one of the poles holding the shelter up, which was the only shield she had from the harsh midday sun. “Give us a tic an’ I’ll have this down, y’can give m’bandages back an’ we’ll be on our way.”

Satya pursed her lips and regarded him suspiciously, but she shifted slightly in the water, made a pained noise, and turned her gaze to examine a bandaged wound on her torso.

“…Why did you do this?” She asked, her words almost reluctant. “I would not have expected human men to aid me.”

Jamison nearly rolled his eyes. “Yer a _real-life_ mermaid. Think we’d be dumb enough t’let y’bleed out? ‘Sides, y’weren’t in any shape t’do it y’self.”

The corner of her mouth ticked up. “How very noble of you. I’d like to ask you one thing, if you don’t mind… have you ever heard of playing dead?”

Jamison’s mouth dropped open and he stared at her. “ _What?”_ He demanded. “Y’aren’t tryin’ t’say y’weren’t passed out?”

Satya shifted restlessly, her tail twitching until she made a stifled noise of pain and stilled. “I was waiting for you to leave.” She said crossly. “I’d hoped you wouldn’t see me.”

“Oh yeah.” Jamison raised his brows slowly. “Gonna move that mast all on yer own, ay? Patch y’self up with wishful thinkin’? What, crawl across the sand t’the water? With y’arm like that?”

Satya scowled heavily. “I have my ways.” She stated slowly. “What I don’t appreciate is being _gawked_ at by some insolent human-”

“We weren’t _gawkin’!”_ Jamison snapped, riled. “We were waitin’ t’see if y’were gonna wake up, seein’ as y’were hurt!”

Satya didn’t reply, just watched him, her lips slightly pursed, as though she were thinking about her reply. As she thought, however, she shifted slightly and jostled her arm. She paled instantly, letting out an involuntary gasp of pain.

“Sore?” Jamison asked, a hint of sympathy creeping into his tone.

Satya held onto her mask for a moment longer before she sagged against the rock, closing her eyes briefly and letting out another pained groan. “Yes.” She said quietly, then opened her eyes.

“Well, don’t really have anythin’ t’help on that front but we can strap y’arm up nice and snug.” He offered, and she gave him a suspicious look.

“Why?”

“Why _not?”_ He asked, frustrated. “For someone who bloody well needs help, y’seem t’be awfully against it.”

Her eyes flashed. “Pardon me for being wary.” Satya snapped. “It is almost as though most humans I’ve encountered don’t try to capture me so they can _sell_ me or keep me as some sort of _pet!”_ Her voice had risen dramatically at this last part, and out of the corner of his eye, Jamison saw Mako look over at them. Jamison, however, was more invested in her words.

“…Sell?” He eyed the mermaid with fresh interest, and her eyes widened with fear.

“No.” She said defensively, trying to squirm backwards. “That has never happened to me, actually. I – I wouldn’t fetch a good price.”

 _How much are mermaids worth, anyway?_ Jamison thought about it for a moment – he’d never heard of anyone actually dealing in live mermaids before, but now that he really thought about it, of course you’d get one hell of a price for one – and here was one, completely at his mercy. She couldn’t get away, that much was obvious. The tide pool was too far from the shoreline for her to crawl even if she _didn’t_ have a dislocated arm, and that didn’t even factor in her other injuries. There was something worth exploring in this, Jamison thought – even if having been locked away in prison a few times in the past meant he abhorred the idea of selling her into a similar fate, but the myths and legends all spoke of hordes of treasure and buried gold. Perhaps he could persuade the mermaid into divulging some secrets.

“Fair ‘nuff.” Jamison said agreeably. “Wouldn’t be able to even if we wanted to, though.” He jerked his metal thumb over his shoulder. “We’re currently without a functionin’ boat, if y’couldn’t tell.”

The corner of her lips twitched up briefly.

“Y’hungry, maybe?” Jamison continued. “Do mermaids eat?”

“Of course we do.” Satya eyed him with a curious expression on her face. “Fish, if you couldn’t tell.”

“Ah.” Jamison rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Don’t have any of that, sadly. Got monkey though. An’ coconut.”

Satya looked warily curious. “…I have never eaten monkey.”

“Well, y’wanna change that?” He offered, and though the wary expression never left her face, she nodded slowly.

Satya did not know what to make of these strange humans. They’d helped her, though a part of her was incredibly worried that they would expect something in return – something out of her power to give. She was grateful to them, in a reluctant sort of way; she’d told the smaller one – Jamison, his name was – that she’d wanted them to leave, and she had, but he was right, curse him, when he’d said she’d have difficulty getting back to the water on her own. Gods, how her arm ached! It was much improved after Mako had slipped her joint back into place – and _that_ had hurt – but Jamison was right. She’d have to crawl, one handed over the rocks, and that didn’t account for the battering she’d taken over the rest of her body. She didn’t really know what most of her wounds looked like, but she was thankful that the strange humans had stopped the bleeding.

Satya closed her eyes and let out a shaky breath, then sank beneath the surface of the tide pool. The cool water closed over her head and she took a deep breath of it, and instead of feeding into her lungs like air did, she felt the water be drawn through the gills on the side of her neck. Salt water was healing, and it was also comfortable – though she was perfectly fine breathing air, she could become dehydrated enough to become seriously ill or even die if out of water for too long. She supposed she had to be grateful for the human Mako for lifting her into the tide pool – while she’d been feigning unconsciousness, she’d heard them debating anxiously where to put her – would she die if left out of water? Now that she was in water, should they put her head under? Jamison seemed to be of the (correct) opinion that as a mermaid, she could breathe underwater and they had better put her completely under, but then Mako had brought up dolphins and how they lived in the water but needed to breathe air, and if they submerged her she might drown. Jamison had pointed out that contrarily, she might be like a reverse dolphin and survive a brief period of time out of water, but ultimately needed water or else she would suffocate.

The recollection made her smile – it had been quite amusing to listen to them fretting over her, and now that she had ‘woken up’ and had conversed with them, Satya wasn’t entirely sure what her opinion ought to be of them. She was wary, and rightly so, but they did seem to be inclined to help her – until she’d been foolish enough to bring up the price she would fetch. Jamison’s eyes had changed, she’d seen it – the curious molten colour had brightened in curiosity, and she knew, as greedy humans, they wouldn’t object to keeping her. But he’d changed the subject, asked her if she was hungry, and Mako had brought her a meal of roasted monkey and a coconut.

Satya had never eaten monkey before, and never anything cooked, either – part of her worried that she might become ill from eating something her body was unaccustomed to, and so she ate little of it, though the flavour and texture was interesting, if peculiar, and the water inside the coconut was sweet.

Mako had gone fishing that afternoon, entering the trees on the island until he came back with a few long, slender poles, which he whittled down to fine points and used to spear fish just off the edge of the rocky shore. His catch was not massive, not like the fish she could catch in deeper waters, but it was fish, and Satya happily devoured her portions raw, to the general amazement of the two humans.

Two days passed in which Satya remained in her rock pool, regaining her strength and allowing her wounds to heal in the salt water. She was beginning to feel cramped and unpleasant in such a tiny space, but bore it, for there was no alternative.

When not gathering food, the humans tried to repair their boat, and Satya thoroughly enjoyed peeking over the edge of her tide pool to watch. The little man often seemed like he was in charge, giving orders and capering about, but it was the larger man who clearly had the bulk of knowledge about how to repair the boat. That wasn’t to say that Jamison was unskilled – he was, judging by the work she watched him doing – it was just that Mako seemed to know more.

Her arm healed slowly, tightly strapped to her body as it was – the agony of it being out of joint had passed, but it was tender and hurt to move, and she was informed that it would remain that way for some days, a fact not exactly conductive to strenuous swimming in the ocean’s unforgiving currents. Her wounds were similar – the rope burns around her waist and tail were healing, but when she moved, they hurt. Her ripped fins were worrisome – she needed them to help her steer, and until they healed, she supposed she would have to remain in the pool. Satya could only hope that she would be better by the time the humans had their boat rebuilt, so they could carry her to the ocean before they sailed away.

Their progress on the boat was steady, something that impressed her. Satya’s total experience with boats and ships was with ones already built, and so she liked to watch them carrying timber to and fro, cutting things into smaller things and weaving vines into rope. Their cloth sail was essentially ruined, so Mako improvised, spending countless placid hours weaving palm fronds into a sail. Jamison helped, but he didn’t seem to be able to spend too long at the task before getting side-tracked by some small thing or other. He laughed a lot, and often came to visit her in her pool.

“G’day.” He greeted her before he’d even properly reached her pool, his peg leg catching on stone and making him curse as he tugged it free.

“Good afternoon.” Satya replied, eyeing the fish in his hands hungrily. Jamison had been trying his hand at spearfishing, and while nowhere near as good as Mako, was able to tolerably feed himself with his catch. He without fail came to share his fish with her, and for that she was grateful. She’d already eaten all the shellfish in her pool, and would be quite hungry if these humans didn’t share.

“Here y’go. Fresh caught just today.” There was a fierce note of pride in his tone and Satya had to smile at it. They’d got off to a rocky start, but they’d both learned to be civil, and now he was downright pleasant, and very amusing.

“Thank you.” Satya took the string of offered fish and looked through them; six small minnows lay in her hands, and she selected one to eat now; she hadn’t eaten all day and was getting quite hungry. She gutted the fish with a practiced swipe of a razor-sharp talon, threw the innards away and then bit into the little creature, bones, skin and all. Jamison and Mako liked to pull all the little bones out and throw them away, which Satya found terribly fussy, for she barely noticed they were there.

Jamison watched her eat for a moment. “Watched y’do that for days now an’ I still don’t get it.” He said with a grimace.

Satya, knowing that he was referring to her eating the fish raw, swallowed her mouthful hurriedly in order to retort. “You don’t have to watch. You can go away, if you like.” She made a shooing motion with her shell hand, and Jamison giggled.

“Just got here.” He made a show of reclining on the rock. “Boat’ll be finished in a day or two. Y’think y’ll be ready t’leave?”

Satya pondered this. “I am not sure.” She finally replied. “I hope so.”

“Ah.” Jamison rubbed at his chin thoughtfully. “Y’know… Mako an’ I were thinkin’…”

“About?” Satya inquired, pulling a fin off her fish and throwing it away.

“Well, if y’aren’t ready t’go back in the ocean when we leave, perhaps y’d like t’come on the boat.”

Satya stared at him. “On your _boat_.” She said, voice sharp. Her gaze flashed to the boat in question, and visions of ropes and bindings and constricting glass tanks danced through her mind.

“Not for long!” Jamison rushed to explain as she stared at him in horror. “Just for a bit. Like, we wanna get off this miserable fuckin’ island an’ get home, but we don’t wanna leave y’here if y’still can’t get back t’the water.” He paused, anxiously assessing her expression and her posture before he continued. “Was just thinkin’, maybe y’could come on the boat for a bit, an’ when yer properly healed, we could drop y’back into the sea.”

Satya didn’t answer him at first. All her instincts informed her that this was a trap and that she’d be a fool to agree, but… the odds were, the boat would be ready before she was, and she wasn’t entirely sure.

“Carry me.” She said abruptly, and Jamison was so startled he nearly fell off the rock.

“What!?”

“Carry me.” Satya motioned impatiently to the shore. “Into the water. I want to see if I can swim.”

“Oh. Y’sure?”

“I’m sure.” Satya glanced out at the ocean again. She missed it terribly, and had all but convinced herself that once she was in deeper waters, she’d be fine.

She could have sworn disappointment flickered across his face, but Jamison still got up and carefully stepped into the pool, bending down so he could scoop her into his arms. Satya aided him as best she could by holding onto his neck with her coral arm, but it was Jamison doing all the work as he slid his arms beneath her and lifted. Her tail sat awkwardly in his grasp; where on a human the knee joints would comfortably fit into the cradle made by his arms, her tail was smooth and unjointed, or at least, not jointed in that way. Jamison grunted with the exertion of getting her up over the rock, and Satya realised with some worry that she’d forgotten to think about his peg leg, which was making it harder for him to manoeuvre around the rocks and sand.

“What are y’doin’?”

That was Mako, calling out from over at the boat. Satya twisted around slightly to look at the big man as he strode towards them, and from over her head, Jamison replied.

“She wants t’go back in the water!”

Mako caught up with them easily as Jamison staggered over the sand; he seemed to be able to deal with the weight of her well, it was just that carrying heavy loads over sand with a peg leg made for difficult progress.

Mako made a motion as though to take her from Jamison’s arms; the larger man would certainly have an easier time carrying her, but Jamison shook his head.

“Nah, mate. I got her.” There was an odd undercurrent to his tone, and whatever it was made Mako defer his movements and watch instead. Satya tightened her grip on Jamison’s neck and he looked down at her, his expression hard to decipher. His body was warm against hers, and Satya looked down with interest at him, for his lower body disappeared into ragged trousers cut off at the knee, and it meant she couldn’t see how his torso turned into legs; this was the closest she’d been to human anatomy, and she was curious.

Jamison got her to the shoreline and carried her in a little way before setting her down. Satya relished the feel of the small waves rushing over her body for a moment, and then frowned critically as she began to assess the water and herself. Jamison crouched beside her, a frown written on his features.

“Y’roight?”

“I think so.” Satya replied, and by settling her weight on her coral hand, she inched her way forwards until the water was deep enough for her to dip underwater completely, which she did, relishing the feel of the currents on her skin. Opening her eyes, Satya could see the feet of the humans – and one peg leg. She hadn’t yet asked him how Jamison had lost his limbs, though she was curious. Satya supposed she’d have to do it soon if she was ever going to find out.

Satya leaned forwards, giving a few experimental movements, and swam slowly into deeper waters. She needed to move her hips and her tail quite vigorously in order to swim with any kind of speed, and that was the most critical thing to test, but she found that each movement ached as it tugged on her wounds, and she felt the sting of them opening up. Drawing in a breath, Satya could taste her own blood in the water, and knew that swimming slowly with open wounds would be like a homing beacon to sharks; ordinarily, she was more than a match for them, but injured and slow was another question all together. If she ran into a very large beast or a pack of them, she would almost certainly come off second best.

It was with a strong sense of reluctance that Satya slowly turned and made for shore, using her coral fingers to grip into the sand and pull herself along so she didn’t have to move her tail. Her flesh arm ached intently at the shoulder if she tried to do anything similar with it, and she knew it futile; she would have to stay at the island… or go on the boat.

Satya popped her head out of the water and blinked a few times, feeling the protective eyelid draw back so she could see on land. Jamison grinned and waved two metal fingers at her, and she smiled back as she drew closer. The closer she got, however, the more her smile slipped until it was a frown. She hated this, being trapped here, essentially at the mercy of these two humans – Satya wanted to _go_ , to swim until she couldn’t swim anymore. She was used to the freedom of the ocean, and this stagnation was jarring to her.

“How’d it go?” Jamison asked enthusiastically. “Good or no?”

“No.” Satya replied despondently. “I can swim, but not well. Should I meet with sharks I will not be able to fend them off.”

Jamison’s eyes widened; he hadn’t appeared to have considered this before. Mako’s thoughts she couldn’t decipher, his expression concealed by his leather mask shaped like some peculiar looking land creature. She’d asked him once, while he was bringing her fish, why he wore it, but he hadn’t answered her.

“So whatcha gonna do?” Jamison asked, crouching down a little to be closer to her.

Satya hesitated, then made her decision. “I will come with you.” She said clearly. “On your boat.” After all, she would remain unbound. And if they betrayed her and chained her up in her sleep, she could lure them into the water with her voice, to drown.

 

* * *

 

They were ready to depart two days later, and after the humans had loaded the moored and repaired boat with as many provisions as they could collect, they loaded her, too. Jamison seemed rather put out over the fact that he couldn’t carry her to the boat through the water to lift her in, and scowled the whole time Mako was carrying her. Satya settled in to the place they’d prepared for her at the prow of the ship, out of the way of their duties with rigging and so forth. And, as Jamison found delightful, they now had a _real_ mermaid as their figurehead.

Satya had explained the matters of dehydration to them both, and Mako had solved that problem by sacrificing a bucket and rope to her, which she could lower overboard and tip over herself at her leisure. Both men, during the rebuilding phase, had been delighted to find that the hatch battening down the hold of their boat had held during their shipwreck, and so had supplies such as buckets, some navigational instruments, a waterlogged but still legible map, and containers that they’d filled with food and fresh water from the island spring. The sky was clear and a decent breeze blew, and so it was with a cautiously optimistic sense of hope that the trio set sail.

Satya delighted in being free of her cramped tide pool at long last. While sitting on the prow of a fishing vessel, occasionally tipping refreshingly cool buckets of seawater over herself was a poor substitute for skimming beneath the waves, she found that riding the dips and rolls were quite fun. She enjoyed listening to Jamison and Mako as they spoke of jibs and stays and rigging, and in the process began to pick up some sailing terminology. The weather remained fair, and they were in good spirits for a few days, as Satya applied herself to keeping hydrated, eating and regaining her strength for when she returned to the sea. The humans remained true to their word, as well. Neither of them intimated anything that resembled a plan to bind and keep her, to sell her at the nearest port, and Satya found herself growing more and more relaxed in their presence.

On the fifth day, it was very early, and the sun was still struggling to rise above the horizon. Jamison was still asleep, though Mako looked as though he was stirring in his hammock. The humans slept in hammocks strung between the masts, and had even given one to her, suspended very low to the deck between the rails of the prow, so she could get into it. It still felt very peculiar, sleeping on something solid rather than in the weightlessness of water, but it was more comfortable than the hard deck, and Satya was pleased with it. She had woken early, as tended to happen, for her skin felt dry and cracked, and was in the process of hauling up water to tip over herself (a slow-going process with only one arm and no enthusiastic Jamison to help her), when she saw movement out of the corner of her eye.

Satya turned and let out a gasp; during the night, with no watchmen awake, a ship had emerged from the early morning fog undetected, and was no alarmingly close. She could see men at the rails, looking down at their little vessel, and ice shot through her veins; these men might try to capture her should they realise what she was. Satya immediately dragged her blanket over her tail and turned to the humans.

“Mako! Jamison!” She hissed, trying to be loud enough to wake them but not loud enough for the other ship to detect. Their fishing vessel was not the smallest boat she’d ever seen, but it was rather dwarfed by this newcomer.

Mako stirred and sat up. It didn’t take him long to notice the interloper, and he swiftly shoved Jamison awake. There was no way to outstrip the ship, not at such close range, and then as the humans stared up at the ship and Satya did the same, ropes came sailing towards them, tipped with iron hooks that gripped into their railing and held tight, preventing their getaway.

Jamison swore, and Satya saw Mako’s fists tighten at his side. She herself held very still, and though she didn’t think she was ready to fend for herself in the open ocean just yet, she remained prepared to fling herself overboard and find safety in the watery depths below. Were this the first day of her association with Jamison and Mako, she might have done so now and left without a backwards glance, totally unconcerned with their fate. But now… she knew them both, and enjoyed their company. Satya felt guilt at the idea of fleeing and leaving them at the hands of this unknown party. So, she stayed, remaining frozen under the gaze of these strange men.

One man, finely dressed in a blue coat, his large hat adorned with a fine plume of white feathers, bent over the railing to speak.

“You are addressed by Captain William Hawkins-” He called quite regally. “-of the _Sally-Anne,_ in the name of his Royal Majesty the King. Fishermen, I take it?”

Jamison went to speak but clearly thought the better of it. Satya watched a curious expression cross his face, and then he agreed.

“Yes.” He called back, raising his voice to make himself heard across the gap. “Jami-” He paused briefly, and then faked a cough. “James. James Fauntleroy, m’name is. This here’s Marvin.” He didn’t mention her, and Satya was glad of that.

“Fauntleroy, eh?” Hawkins paused suddenly, and even from this distance Satya could see his gaze lasering over Jamison’s metal limbs. The captain continued, his voice suddenly sharper. “ _Fauntleroy?_ ” He fell silent, considering Jamison again, and then his gaze went to Mako, lingering on the large man’s masked features. One of the men beside Hawkins stepped up and muttered something in his ear, and then the captain’s features settled into recognition. “Ah…”

Hawkins grinned. “I thought I knew you, _Fawkes_. In the interest of revealing our respective disguises…” He waved a lazy hand, and Satya watched, first in confusion, then in suspicion, and then in horror as the British flag flying at the top of their mainmast descended to be replaced by a black flag of skull and crossbones. The Jolly Roger. _Pirates_.

Jamison appeared to be angry as he strode forwards. “Hawkins, y’great bastard.” He ground his teeth. “Thought the British paid y’well t’give up piracy.”

Hawkins waved an airy hand. “They did. A privateer or a buccaneer, what’s the difference, really?” He leaned over the railing and leered. “The last time you and I crossed paths, _Junkrat_ , you were in possession of quite a grand ship and an impressive crew. I’d ask what unfortunate circumstances led to your current situation, but I don’t much care.”

Satya stared at Jamison, who looked like he wanted nothing more than to batter Hawkins to death with his own hat. He’d had a ship? And a crew? They weren’t fishermen? Why hadn’t he said so?

Hawkins continued. “I had planned to loot your _pathetic_ excuse for a ship and press you hapless fishermen into my crew, but this will be a much more satisfying alternative.” He raised his hand, and several crewmembers began rolling a few barrels towards the railing – and one man carried a flaming torch. Fear shot through her – Hawkins intended to burn them alive.

The man at Hawkins’ side, similarly well-dressed yet obviously lower than his captain, spoke inaudibly, and Satya cringed and tried to shrink down as Hawkins turned to look at her.

“But of course!” He cried gallantly. “How could I have forgotten the lady?” Satya glared at him as he eyed her speculatively. “An _exotic_ , mm? Who is she, Fawkes? The wife, perhaps, of your own, ah, _august_ person?”

This was met with raucous laughter, and Jamison, his fists clenched, told Hawkins exactly where he could stick his hat.

“It wouldn’t be gentlemanly of me to condemn a lady to death, no matter her unfortunate connections.” Hawkins continued. “You’ll be pleased to know, Fawkes, that when you’re in your watery grave, your lady shall be well provided for.”

Satya barely heard Jamison’s protestations over the anger burning in her veins. Hawkins meant to take her. He was a pirate – he’d sell her for sure, and she’d never see the ocean again.

Several men now boarded the little fishing boat, and when Jamison, unarmed but furious, launched himself upon them and Mako came to his aid, more and more pirates descended. Most joined the fray but a few advanced upon her, and Satya shrank back, thinking frantically of what to do.

One of the men, a tall, lanky fellow with several missing teeth, held out his hand. “C’mon, miss.” He said. “Easier if you just come now.”

Satya shook her head and drew back more, and the men shrugged and leaned in to bodily grab her. One of them grabbed her blanket and pulled it off, and Satya flicked her tail, drawing it as close to her body as she could. The men gasped and fell back, and she could hear shouts of shock and amazement from the ship. Down the other end of the boat, Jamison redoubled his efforts to free himself. Mako hurled a man into the ocean and knocked another one down flat as Hawkins recovered himself and started yelling, hopping about on deck in his excitement.

“Mermaid!” He shrieked, feathered hat bobbing madly. “Grab her!”

One of the men, a stocky redhead with his hair pulled back in a queue made a grab for her, and Satya lashed out, raking her coral nails across his cheek. He fell back with a howl of pain, and Satya coiled her tail painfully beneath her, then launched herself forwards, skittering across the deck, using her tail to half slither and her coral nails to dig into the timber and pull herself along. Taken by surprise, Hawkins’ men shrieked and fell back, tripping over themselves in their efforts to get away, and Satya reached Mako uncontested. She reached up, sinking her fingers into his trousers to pull herself up and he slung her up into his arms, backing away from the pirates. Satya wasn’t satisfied with this, and struggled upwards till she could whisper in his ear.

“Block your ears.” She hissed, hoping he knew enough about mermaid myths to comply. “Don’t let Jamison jump in the water.”

Hawkins recovered enough to start bawling orders from his ship, and his men advanced once more, and others began to board their little boat. Mako set Satya down behind him and started rifling through the little knapsack he kept with him, his sheer size keeping Hawkins’ men wary for the moment. Jamison, on the other hand, was still attempting to wrestle three pirates at once, and cracked one man’s skull on the floorboards. The distraction caused by the sickening crack of bone and subsequent howl of agony was the perfect moment for Satya to pull herself to the railing and slither overboard. The movement was far from graceful, but it got her into the water.

Satya took a deep breath of water, her protective second eyelid sliding into place before she opened her eyes. She let herself sink for a long moment, trying to give Mako the time he needed to find something; she hoped he would have by the time she went back to the surface. Trying to ignore the wracking pain shooting up and down her arm where she’d jostled it in her mad dash across the boat, Satya rose to the surface, opened her mouth, and began to sing.

 

* * *

 

Jamison didn’t know what the fuck was going on. He’d woken up to find their little fishing boat being encroached upon by a fucking navy warship, and then it’d turned out to be William Hawkins, who, when Jamison had last heard of him, was working as a privateer for the British Navy. For a minute he’d thought he might bluff his way out of it, but Hawkins, the turncoat bastard, was still secretly a pirate at heart. _And now he wanted Satya._ Jamison might not have had any weapons since they were lost in the shipwreck, but that wasn’t going to stop him from beating every single pirate’s face to bloody mush if that was what it took.

And then she’d jumped overboard.

Jamison was bloody glad, because it meant she was out of Hawkins’ clutches. He just was redoubling his efforts to pound the man in front of him into pulp when he heard the most ethereal voice he’d ever heard in his life. Jamison froze, and so did the man he was fighting. They all did, in fact, and numbly, they dragged themselves to their feet to gaze overboard, where there was a mermaid floating in the water, her hair drifting around her as she sang.

Gooseflesh rose on his arms and a tremor ran down his spine as her voice continued to fill his ears. Jamison forgot everything he’d been doing in favour of listening – he felt like, if she stopped singing, he would die. Her voice was angelic, utterly divine, and it felt like it was filling him up with starlight. Satya wasn’t looking at him; she was gazing up at Hawkins, and that frustrated him. He wanted to be close, he wanted to hear her song.

He wanted to go in the water.

Jamison barely noticed that the other pirates had the same idea; three of them had jumped overboard already, and were struggling in the water. Jamison, _needing_ to get closer to her voice, began climbing the rail. Something grabbed him from behind as he swung his leg over the rail, and for a moment Jamison didn’t even notice he wasn’t falling into the water. Then, he realised he wasn’t any closer to Satya’s voice, and a panicked whine escaped his lips. _No_. Those others – they were close to her. He could see them, floundering in the water, and more and more were jumping overboard to be near her. _He_ wanted to be close to her. Jamison began to struggle against whatever was preventing him from being closer to her voice – it filled his ears and made his heart pound. He could feel an intense longing welling up inside, and it burned in his veins.

“Lemme go!” He snarled, swiping fruitlessly behind him, but he was held fast. He had to get out of their grip and to the water. He tried to grab the railing; he seized it and latched on, trying to pry himself out of their hold, but they held fast. He barely recalled his own name, but that didn’t matter. Nothing did, except her song.

He could see Hawkins’ hat floating in the water, but it didn’t register – his skin was buzzing with the intensity of the music coursing through him; he now felt as though he were floating, as though he’d combust from the sheer beauty of it. She turned in the water then, and when his eyes locked on hers he felt his breath hitch. She was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen – it was like he could see it, a physical manifestation of her beauty as she sang. It was sublime, the sound of her voice. It made him feel as though he was ascending to some higher plane, and he knew if only he could get closer, it would all come to a head.

_The water._

He needed to be in the water. Her song pulled him in – it was the sound of the ocean, the lull and pull of the waves, the power of it. It flowed through him and made him feel as though he were locked outside a gate of a purely illuminated existence – and if he were in the water, he’d find heaven.

Satya was swimming closer, and every nerve in his body exulted – the closer she got, the closer he was to enlightenment. She drew near the edge of the boat and reached up, her hand gripping the railing. He whimpered and reached for her, but as he did so she stopped singing.

It was as though some god had reached in and scooped out his insides – he felt hollow, empty, devoid of all light and being. He sagged, eyes still locked on Satya, hoping with every fibre of his being that she would sing once more and let him ascend to heaven.

Jamison took a deep breath and felt an intense buzzing in his ears, as though his body thought hearing Satya’s song was a natural state of being and was trying to fill the void. She smiled up at him and he tried to smile back, utterly dazed.

She lifted up a hand and it was like his mind was running slower than normal, because he just blinked at her. A large hand appeared in his line of sight and Jamison blinked at it instead, then stared, stupefied, as the hand lifted Satya into the boat. He didn’t seem to know how his limbs worked, but that also didn’t really seem like a problem at the moment, for the only thing important to him right now was hearing her divine song once more.

“Sing.” He croaked desperately, staring at her, and Satya looked amused. She seemed to be backlit by the rising sun, and the gentle rays picked out the gold in her hair and brightened her eyes. He could have drunk her in forever.

“I think you have had enough.” She said softly, and though her voice was lovely, utterly divine, it lacked the entrancing tones of her song, and the loss of it made him ache inside.

Whatever was holding him plucked him loosely off the railing and plunked him to the floor, and Jamison sat, content to watch her. If he took his eyes off her for one second and she began to sing and he _missed_ it, he’d never forgive himself.

“Please.” He eked out, completely ready to beg.

“Have y’fried his mind?” Came a wary voice from behind him, but it didn’t belong to the heavenly mermaid and so was utterly unimportant.

“No.” The mermaid smiled again and began to wring out her wet hair. “He’ll be all right. It’ll just take him a little while to snap out of it. Think of it as him getting over a heavy night of drinking.”

The voice, which Jamison registered was kind of familiar, sighed in disgust. “He’s three sheets t’the wind ‘cause y’sang a song. It’d only happen t’him.”

Satya laughed slightly, and Jamison almost strained his ears trying to listen hard enough.

“Not so.” She said, and smiled right at him, which nearly made his bloody heart stop. “It’d happen to anyone who heard it.”

Jamison didn’t really catch what the other voice said in reply; he was too busy watching Satya. As it happened, it took nearly an hour for him to recover, his clarity of mind slowly trickling back in. Mako – he remembered his name after a quarter of an hour – had wrapped him in a blanket and told him to stay put. That was fine by Jamison – Satya was directly in his line of sight and so he sat quietly, drinking her in. She asked him the occasional question, which he answered sometimes in an indistinct mumble without really knowing what he was saying, but he eventually returned to himself.

Jamison finally tore his gaze away from her to find where Mako had gone, and heard a soft, feminine ‘ah’, behind him. Turning back curiously, he found Satya watching him with an amused expression on her face.

“So you return to the land of the living.” She said, her tone teasing, and Jamison managed a sheepish laugh.

“Yeah.” He scrubbed a hand over his face. “I reckon so, anyway.” He blew out his breath. “That sure was somethin’.”

“It was.” She agreed, and then Jamison remembered something important that he’d forgotten in the face of Satya’s song.

“Oi, where’s-?” Jamison looked about, but saw no one resembling a pirate – Hawkins had gone.

“There.” Satya said simply, and following her gaze, Jamison peered over the railing. Littering the ocean around them were bodies, quite a few bodies, and already there were sharks feeding on them, blood staining the surging blue peaks crimson.

“ _Shit_.” Jamison climbed up onto his knees to see better, and recognised Hawkins’ body floating face down – and missing an arm. He turned back to stare at Satya. “What-?”

“They drowned.” She said simply, inspecting her coral fingernails. “That’s why I was singing. When I sing, men will follow me to the ends of the earth.” The smile she gave him then was wicked and gleaming, and all too well Jamison could see himself being _happy_ to drown for her song.

The fact that he very nearly _had_ didn’t make him feel much better.

“So wait – hang on a tic-” Jamison attempted to make sense of things. “-y’were tellin’ ‘em t’drown?”

“Yes.” Satya adjusted a strand of pearls and gave him another lethal smile, and now he could see exactly how dangerous she was.

“So… why didn’t I?” He dared to ask.

Her expression turned amused. “You don’t remember? Mako held you back.”

“Oh.” Jamison blinked and tried to remember. He vaguely recalled something holding him back, but the memory was fuzzy, like a dream. The fact that he could recall the sensation of _wanting_ with every fibre of his being to jump into the water was especially disconcerting; like most pirates or seamen in general, he couldn’t swim. Better a swift death then spending countless hours treading water, waiting for sharp teeth to rip into you from the depths below. His metal limbs were another factor – they’d weigh him down and make it harder to keep his head above the water. If Mako hadn’t stopped him from jumping… he’d have sunk like a stone. He made a mental note to thank Mako profusely. “Uh… where is Mako?”

“On board the ship.” Satya looked towards a rope ladder hanging over the edge. “He’s searching for supplies. He wanted to move us onto Hawkins’ ship, but you couldn’t manage it with only two crew. He decided to loot it instead.”

His sluggish brain was finally starting to kick into gear, and Jamison stood up. “That’s good thinkin’.” He said. “Gonna go find him. Wait there, ay?”

Satya said she would, and Jamison dropped his blanket and climbed laboriously up the ladder. He found Mako in the galley, going through the food stores and putting things into large sacks.

“Oi. Mako.” He started, and Mako immediately swung round and came over to him. Jamison found a large hand being pressed to his forehead, as if checking for fever.

“Y’still out of it?” Mako’s tone was rather sharp, and Jamison shook his head defensively.

“Nah, I’m good, mate.”

Mako dropped his hand and watched for a long moment. Finally, he shook his head and turned back to the stores. “Surreal.” He rumbled under his breath, and Jamison felt a spike of indignation.

“Yer tellin’ me! I _wanted_ t’jump in the water, mate! I can still feel it – she got inside me head real bad.” He shivered slightly. “ _Real_ bad.”

Mako uttered a cursory grunt of agreement, and that brought Jamison to his next point.

“She said y’held me back. Not that I ain’t appreciative or nuthin’, but how come she didn’t affect _you?”_

Mako huffed a laugh. “She told me t’block me ears. Was easy enough. Just had t’hold on t’ya an’ watch Hawkins drown.”

“I didn’t even see it!” Jamison was extremely offended by this fact. “Fuck, can’t believe I missed seein’ that bastard drown!”

Mako nodded and continued stuffing a sack. “Easiest we’ve ever dealt with other pirates.” He mused, and Jamison nodded fervently.

“That’s for sure. Pretty handy havin’ a mermaid around, I reckon.” A brilliant thought occurred to him then. “Oi – where’s Hawkins’ cabin? I’m gonna go have a look.”

Jamison left Mako in the galley stocking up, and hunted about until he found the door to Hawkins’ cabin. Hawkins was a man of expensive tastes and always had been – there had to be some shit worth stealing on this ship. The fact that Mako was right caused him pain – here was an entire ship ripe for the taking, but with only himself and Mako, they couldn’t steal it. It was enough to break his heart.

An hour later, with a sack stuffed full of clothes, treasures, swords and pistols, knickknacks and navigational items, Jamison was feeling slightly better. He’d looted until he’d run out of interesting or valuable things to take, and was now kind of excited to get back to their boat because he’d found something in Hawkins’ cabin he was sure Satya would like.

It was a golden circlet, the kind of thing he imagined princesses would wear. It would look lovely against her dark skin – she had a very regal appearance, and Jamison daydreamed for a moment, imagining her in it.

He met up with Mako on deck, and after a brief discussion, they both decided to destroy the ship. Well, Jamison enthusiastically proposed it and Mako accepted resignedly. Jamison set about fetching barrels of gunpowder from the hold and arranging them on deck, and poured out trails of the stuff in a nice decorative pattern. He had found a long length of rope and soaked it in pitch to make a fuse, which he hung over the edge of the ship. Once safely in the fishing boat, Jamison lit the end of the rope and then Mako swiftly lowered the sail, letting the stiff morning breeze take them out of danger. Jamison perched on the railing, watching the little glowing dot that marked the progress of the fuse slowly advance until it passed onto the deck and a wracking explosion rocked the ship on the waves.

Satya gasped from the prow and Jamison whooped with glee; he was very fond of explosions. It was something he didn’t get to experience quite as much as he would like, but when he did get to set something ablaze or blow it sky high, it was the highlight of his week.

Mako had taken them far enough away that no shrapnel hit them; they were able to sit and watch as the ship caught fire and began to burn fiercely.

“Didja see that?” Jamison turned to scurry over near where Satya was sitting.

She gave him an indulgent yet amused smile. “I did, as a matter of fact.”

He beamed. “Whadija think?”

“Very impressive.” She allowed, leaning her weight on her coral arm. Jamison let his gaze linger on it for a moment. It reminded him of his own prosthetic arm, except for the obvious – his was made of metal and hers was made from… shells. Shells and bits of coral, somehow working together and not collapsing when she moved it. He’d been dying to ask her for days now, but hadn’t yet worked up the courage. Drunk on the explosion and the remnants of her song, Jamison scooted a little closer, then turned to watch Hawkins’ ship. It was well and truly on fire now, and was listing badly to port. As they watched, it gradually sank lower and lower until it began taking on water, and then all of a sudden, it collapsed inwards and sank in a great froth of fire and steam and was abruptly swallowed by the water, never to be seen again.

Jamison sighed in pure happiness, then snuck a sideways glance to see if Satya had heard him or not. She didn’t appear to, so he asked her something that had been on his mind for a while.

“So y’went in the water. How’d it go? Y’ready t’leave?” He asked, and she looked regretful.

“No, I don’t think so.” Her coral hand caressed her still strapped and bound shoulder. “Not yet. It was quite painful, and I think I may have strained my shoulder again falling overboard.”

Jamison cursed Hawkins’ memory for a moment.

“Never mind.” He said out loud. “You’ll get there eventually.”

She smiled softly. “Thank you.”

His gaze dipped back to her coral hand. The way the pieces moved together… it was almost like a real hand… except not.

“How does yer arm work?” He asked abruptly. “I mean…”

Obviously seeing him trying to backtrack, Satya glanced down at her coral hand and smiled. “It’s magic.” She said softly. “Magic woven into every shell.”

“Magic. Huh.” Jamison blinked. Supposedly mythical creatures was one thing, but _magic?_ Seeing as how she’d uttered the words so matter-of-factly, he decided not to contest it. “It uh, works well.”

She gave her arm a fond look. “It does. Then again, I’ve had it a long time. We’ve gotten used to one another.”

“Same here.” He said companionably, tapping his metal knee with his metal hand. “Kinda got no other choice, ay?”

Satya smiled at that. “Indeed.” Her gaze lingered on his prosthetics for a moment. “Will you tell me how you lost your limbs?” She asked after a moment.

Jamison nodded and leaned back against the railing. “Sure. An excitin’ tale, full of blood an’ guts an’ pirates.” He grinned at her, and she smiled back. “Roight, so. Lost me leg a good while back. Was takin’ a ship an’ the bloody captain shot me. Got me roight here.” Jamison traced a finger where the muscle of his calf used to be. “Didn’t even nick the bone. Doc said it’d be roight an’ that I’d been lucky, but it got inflamed.” He grimaced. “Blood poisoning. So it had t’come off.”

“I see.” Satya’s expression was a little distant, as if she was thinking about something. “And your arm?”

“That happened a few years later.” Jamison said breezily. “Got smashed by a canon shot. Lucky it didn’t kill me outright, t’be honest. Came close enough.”

Satya nodded slightly, her expression now a little troubled. “Jamison…”

An unexpected thrill of pleasure at hearing his name on her lips assailed him, and Jamison frowned inwardly. What did _that_ mean?

“What did you mean just now?” Satya continued. “When you said you were taking a ship?”

“Oh.” Jamison figured it was only natural she’d want a little elaboration. “Well, was this big merchant ship. Full of lace an’ brandy – bloody good stuff. Was over near Tortuga, actually, was gonna smuggle it back on me own ship an’ sell it there.”

The furrow in between her brows deepened. “And you… stole from merchants… often?”

He couldn’t work out what she was driving at, but enthusiasm for his profession spurred his tongue to action. “Yeah, often enough. Still be doin’ it now if I hadn’t lost me ship.” Jamison’s brow furrowed as he thought regretfully of his lost vessel.

Alarm was creeping over her features. “You had a ship? Hawkins was right? This boat is not yours?”

Jamison looked down at the boat beneath him and then gave her a doubtful look. “‘Course not. What, didja think we were _fishermen?”_

“Yes!” Satya stared at him, eyes wide. “You-” her eyes widened further, if that were possible. “-you take ships… pirates take things… you’re a _pirate!?”_

“Don’t see why yer gettin’ all worked up over it.” He said with a frown. “Thought y’woulda known it from the get go-”

“How would I know?” She hissed. “You wash up on an island in a little fishing boat with one other person. What about _that_ screams ‘pirate’?”

“Well, that’s fair.” Jamison said finally. “But surely y’got some inklin’ of it when Hawkins was yammerin’. He knows me. Knew me, I guess.”

“That is – I didn’t think of it at the time.” Satya said, her expression still agitated.

“Well, fair enough.” Jamison frowned slightly. “Why’re y’gettin’ all upset over it for?”

She said nothing in favour of simply stared at him, so Jamison set to puzzling it out on his own. _Pirates take ships_ , she’d said. Pirates take things too, just like Hawkins had tried to take her. He gave her a very cautious look.

“Have y’met with pirates before?”

Satya looked away, her fingers unconsciously brushing over the wrist of her coral hand. He could see pain written on her features, and abruptly realised. She must have had a bad experience at the hands of pirates, an experience that resulted in the loss of her arm. No wonder she was suddenly fearful and distrustful.

“Well, I might be a pirate-” Jamison began, eager to put her mind at ease. “-but I ain’t much chop as one at the current moment. Can’t do much with a poxy little fishing boat. That bein’ said, I might have stolen a fair bit over the years, but I’ve never stolen a mermaid.”

Satya looked up, her expression disbelieving. “Never.” She said flatly, and Jamison knew what she was driving at.

“Never. Got a mermaid on board now, that’s true enough, but she’s free t’leave whenever she pleases.”

Her expression changed infinitesimally. “Am I?”

“‘Course. Bit of a difference between stealin’ a ship an’ stealin’ a person, dontcha reckon?”

She smiled, just a little bit, and turned to face the ocean again before she spoke. “You are something of a contradiction, are you not?”

“Eh?”

“I have never heard of a pirate with such morals.”

Jamison shrugged uneasily. “As it happens, I didn’t have ‘em, once upon a time. Happened t’get captured m’self once, a while back, though, an’ I didn’t exactly care for it. Since then, I figured other people mightn’t care for it either.”

Her smile was a proper smile then, and Jamison grinned back, elated.

“I will believe you for now.” Satya decided, then turned and leaned in, her voice silky smooth as her breath brushed over his cheek. “But if you lie to me, I will feed your guts to the sharks.”

Jamison remembered her singing, the way she could have made him do anything, and shivered. “That’s fair. Way I see it though, any man’d be stupid t’try an’ take a mermaid who could sing him t’death.”

Her laugh was like silver bells. “True.”

He tapped his metal fingers on his thigh. “Found somethin’ in Hawkins cabin. Thought y’might enjoy it.”

Satya turned to look at him. “What is it?”

Jamison pulled the circlet from his pocket and offered it to her. Satya didn’t gasp or flutter her hands or immediately praise its beauty and thank him for his generosity the way other women he’d gifted things had; she simply took the circlet and turned it over and over in her hands, examining it carefully.

“Thank you.” She said at length. “It is a very fine piece.”

“Thought it’d go well.” He said somewhat awkwardly, and gestured to the strands of pearls in her hair and around her neck. “Cause of the pearls.” The circlet had a simple pearl setting in the centre, and would match her ornaments very well.

“Indeed.” Satya eyed the circlet for a moment, then lifted it into place, carefully arranging it on her brow. She turned to face him and gave him a smile. “What do you think?”

“It’s lovely.” He said honestly, somewhat dazzled by her smile. He would have said more, but Mako called him then, and Jamison left her to attend to the sails.

 

* * *

 

Satya’s arm had healed by the time a week had elapsed. Her wounds and rope burns were also much improved; some had mended completely, and others, while still not completely closed over, had scabbed over to the point where she could move easily enough to swim. Mako had unstrapped her arm two days ago, and she had experimented with her range of movement by going for short, gentle swims around the boat while the ocean was calm.

She’d even run into a shark while enjoying an early morning swim; Jamison had been thoroughly impressed when she had described how she’d come out on top during that little encounter.

Jamison was spending more and more time with her, and the time not spent sitting by her to talk was spent furtively glancing at her, and looking swiftly away when she caught his eye. His ears would redden and he’d seem flustered, and she was thoroughly enjoying herself. Satya knew what was causing it, of course; she just wanted to wait and see what he would do with it.

Satya stretched, enjoying the feeling of moving her arm once more; it was essentially pain free, and only twinged when she jerked it. The sun was setting, and she luxuriated in the world dimming its lights, extinguishing the harsh glow of day in the ocean.

 

* * *

 

Jamison passed a rough night. He wasn’t even entirely sure if he’d slept at all; it had been one of _those_ nights. There was a reason for his preoccupation and that reason was awake, sitting against the prow combing out her hair. He’d known she was awake when he heard the tell-tale sounds of water being poured along her body, and his nerves increased. He knew now, why he couldn’t stop thinking about her, couldn’t help snatching covert glances during the day. He knew why the chance to sit with her and talk to her was so alluring, and it wasn’t simply because she was a mermaid, beautiful and otherworldly.

He rolled over in his hammock and tried to block it out, until the most genius plan hit him, and he scurried out of bed like his pants were on fire. Mako was still asleep, which was good; the whole world slumbered still, and the sun had not yet sleepily struggled above the waves.

Jamison slunk across deck, trying to be quiet as so not to wake Mako, and reached Satya only to stand there somewhat awkwardly. She was sitting with her back against the railing, near the section he and Mako had cut out so she could get in and out of the boat by herself; Satya gently tapped the deck beside her, and he gratefully sat.

She didn’t speak for a moment, and he was kind of glad because it meant he could get his thoughts in order, his fingers tapping anxiously over the deck. Eventually, the silence became too much and the words poured out of him without his consent.

“I’ve fuckin’ well fallen in love with you.” He blurted, voice strained, then closed his eyes in sheer horror. Why in the _hell_ had he said it like _that?_

Satya hummed a soft laugh in her throat and he scrunched his eyes tighter closed, mortification utterly complete. “Well of course you have.” She said finally, her tone amused and pleased. “You heard my song.”

 _Oh_. Abruptly, everything slotted into place. Since hearing her sing, he’d been besotted. Absolutely infatuated. He relaxed slightly as he realised it.

“Oh, good.” He said gratefully. “It ain’t real, then.”

“Of course it’s real.” Satya tilted her head, looking amused. “You feel it with every fibre of your body, don’t you?”

He didn’t want to admit it, but she was right. “Well…” He said reluctantly, and Satya shifted closer, and to his alarm, she reached up to brush her fingers along his jaw.

“Well?” She definitely sounded amused. “You do feel it, do you not?” Jamison panicked as she began to trail her fingers down his throat, then traced along his collarbone and down to dig her sharp nails in over his heart. “Right… here?” She breathed, and Jamison realised she was close enough that he could feel her breath ghosting over his skin, and he swallowed hard.

“Yes.” He eked out, voice hoarse, and she smiled and released him.

“I thought so.”

He stared at her, eyes wide. “But – it’s _not_ real.” Jamison croaked. “It isn’t logical.”

“Affairs of the heart don’t have to be logical.” Satya smiled at him. “But that does not mean they are not true and just.”

Jamison shook his head a little desperately. “No.”

“Yes.” She breathed. “Don’t fight it.”

“But – I-” He tried to change the subject. “Does this happen t’everyone?”

“Yes.” Satya’s fingers skimmed along his arm, leaving gooseflesh in her wake. “Anyone who hears a mermaid’s song and lives will fall in love.”

“Why?”

She shrugged delicately. “Survival. Humans are greedy things, but a human cannot think of capturing us when they have entirely devoted themselves to us.” Her smile was wicked as she leaned in, far too close to his mouth for him to feel calm. “You’d do _anything_ for me, wouldn’t you, Jamison?” She purred, and he closed his eyes on a shaky breath as her sharp nails trailed down his throat and made him shiver.

“Yes.” He said hoarsely, utterly spellbound, and then he shook his head to clear it. “I mean, no. I got me own mind.” He said defensively.

“Well, of course you do.” She said, her voice a sympathetic coo. “It is just that, when I sing, none of that matters. It’s not your fault. Humans just can’t resist.”

Jamison went to protest, but something else occurred to him. “Humans?” Jealousy gnawed at him. “You’ve done this before? How many men love you?” He demanded, and Satya stifled a giggle.

“A few.” She said softly, and jealousy warred with anger in his heart.

“A _few_?”

“Most of them are dead now.” She said, as if this were some sort of consolation.

 _“Most?”_ Jamison couldn’t believe how envious he was at hearing of her past lovers. _Wait_. Had they actually been her lovers? Or merely lovesick fools? He wanted badly to ask, but also didn’t really think he wanted to know.

“Yes, most.” Satya gave him a smile. “One went to the continent to make his fortune. He promised to return, but it has been several years since I last saw him. Another was previously married, and loves his wife. My power over him diminishes the longer he remains happily wedded. Another married to free herself from the longing. She is a countess now, I believe, and-”

 _“She?”_ Jamison interrupted.

Satya looked amused. “Yes, she. Did you think women were immune to my song? Anyone can fall in love.”

He felt dazed. “I don’t understand. Don’t y’sing people t’death? How does that make ‘em fall in love with you?”

Satya’s laugh was like a silver bell. “Silly. How do you think I persuade people to drown themselves? They love me too much to resist.”

“Oh.” Jamison blinked and swallowed. This was a lot to take in.

Her fingers still skimmed along his arm, and try as he might, he enjoyed her touch. Jamison wanted to say that his feelings for her were fake, false constructions of magic, but he could feel the truth of her words in his bones. It was real. He loved her.

“What about you?” He asked, avoiding her gaze.

“Me?” She sounded puzzled.

“Yeah. Do… do y’ever feel anythin’?”

She was quiet for a long moment. “Sometimes, my heart stirs.” She murmured. “It takes someone rather special.”

“Oh.” Jamison decided not to ask her what she felt for him. He didn’t think he’d be able to handle the disappointment.

Satya lifted her hand to his jaw then, and gently turned his face towards her. “You have been kind to me.” She said softly. “You have helped me with no thought to your own gain. You mended my wounds and tried to defend me against pirates.” Satya paused for a moment, then leaned in close enough that he could barely string two words together. “That shows something special, I think.” When her lips pressed against his cheek, Jamison might have made a sound. He honestly didn’t know. Her mouth on his flesh seemed to scorch him to the bone, burning an imprint into his skin that he was sure would remain there forever more.

Satya drew back and gave him a smile as she laced her fingers with his, the mixture of coral and metal a little awkward, it’s true, but he could still the feel the affection.

“Really?” He whispered, eyes wide, and she nodded.

“Really.”

Jamison was not at all prepared when she kissed him. Her mouth was warm against his and her lips were so incredibly soft and he was quite sure his brain had melted as she pulled back slightly. He could do nothing but stare for a moment, and then his thoughts caught up with the rest of him and he realised what had just happened.

“ _Christ_.” He mumbled, and the corner of her mouth lifted.

“Was that so bad?”

“ _Bad?”_ Jamison began to splutter in his effort to convince her otherwise; if she thought he hadn’t liked it or wanted it and decided not to kiss him again, he thought he might die. “No – Satya – wait, listen, roight, I-”

The curve of her lips grew more pronounced. “You are not offended?” She asked, and he stared for a moment, jaw slack.

“No.” He breathed. “Never.” Jamison took hold of his courage then, and lifted his hand to her face. Her skin was soft, and he traced a line from her temple to down along her jaw, then pushed her damp hair back, and leaned in. Satya met him halfway, and this time, with him actually prepared to respond to the kiss, it was better. With one hand cupping her jaw and the other settling on her waist, Jamison tugged her a little closer and Satya wound her arms about his neck. The kiss deepened and Jamison, his breath growing ragged, nipped at her bottom lip before kissing her properly again. Satya gasped against his mouth and then she was in his lap without him even knowing how she’d gotten there and her hands were in his hair and molten fire was bubbling through his veins and scorching his skin to ash wherever she touched him. He cupped her lower back and pulled her closer, his metal fingers brushing over where the scales of her tail began, and when they broke the kiss, Satya leaned her forehead against his as they panted softly.

Satya trailed her fingers over his cheek, her sharp talons making him shiver slightly, and she smiled. For a creature of water, she was burning hot, and Jamison was certain if she kissed him again she’d set him ablaze, and this was one fire in which he was happy to suffer. His grin was uncontrollable and he barely remembered to check if Mako was still sleeping or watching disapprovingly, and Satya smiled.

“Come swim with me.” She breathed, her voice hypnotic, and Jamison peered over the edge of the boat as she slipped gracefully from his lap and into the sea. Part of him had serious unable-to-swim related objections, and part of him wanted to go to her.

Satya bobbed up and down gently in the waves, and held out her hand. “Come swim with me.” She repeated.

He went.

**Author's Note:**

> so I know sirens and mermaids are different things but w/e i just wanted to write satya as a beautiful mermaid with a lethal voice ok
> 
> this is 100% self-indulgent mermay fluff
> 
> also I enjoy the thought of Jamison wearing a 17th century coat
> 
> some notes - 
> 
> Jamison is a feared pirate captain but lost his ship and crew in a game of poker. he stole the fishing boat
> 
> Mako used to be a fisherman before some tragedy occurred (he won’t tell Jamison what happened) and he donned the mask and became muscle for hire
> 
> Satya enjoys riding the waves during storms. She was pulling a nemo and touching the boat when the mast came overboard, and thats how she got tangled in their rigging
> 
> Jamison will eventually be gifted a rare treasure by Satya, sparking an intense hunt for this pirate captain 
> 
> Mako stuffed his ears with the beeswax he’d been planning to make into a candle
> 
> Satya’s fear of pirates isn’t unfounded - like Jamison suspects, she lost her arm to pirates trying to capture her to sell. she had an ocean witch weave her an arm from coral and shells 
> 
> Mako was totally awake. Jamie’s gonna get an earful later


End file.
